1) There is no existing post that already covers what I would say (although consolidation and/or simplification are viable reasons to still post).2) There is inherent value in the post for either me at a later date or someone else i.e. it is a solution to a problem, not just opinion.

This criteria has lead me to write just four posts. I am not interested in filling a blog up with musings (although this is a valuable output from some people). I find that there are plenty of forums (in the nontechnical sense although they are mostly forums in the technical sense) for opinions and discussions on various topics.

If people want to research me online I am clear about who I am in all my online presences; same name, same avatar. Of course, I am lucky to have an uncommon name combination.

100% agreement. I usually tell people to write a post on backups. Yes, they've been done before. I think I must have 6-8 blog posts and at least that many articles. Why do something that's been done before? Because people still don't do their backups and maybe your post will reach someone that mine won't.

Plus, remember, blogging is different than writing articles. Blogging is about helping you remember what you've done by providing a place to put it into a logical order that you can retrieve later. Also, it provides a place to point employers to show them your ability to learn and document that learning, huge skills for good employers. Don't get hung on whether someone else has written the same blog post before. I almost guarantee, whatever it is, someone else has probably done it. But write it anyway. It's practice writing. It's practice ordering your thoughts. It has value.

Apart from a site that initially could be read as a site being knowledgable on gender switching, the biggest pet peeve for me in this area are the people who blog via copy and paste (with a little change in order for them to demonstrate how little they truly understand) and sites which provide a view over existing AND public forums (oh maybe this is the solution...oh no it is exactly the same as three other forum sites...grrrrr).

lshanahan (10/22/2013)I see Steve's point, but I honestly learn more from forums like this than most blogs. Easier to find stuff here, too.

I, too, can find things easier here. But I see Steve's point, in that blogging about it raises your visibility to the rest of the world. Perhaps people seeking help on doing something like SQL Backups, haven't heard of SQL Server Central before? Who knows, but it does seem to me that recognition, which was one of the things Steve was trying to address in his article, is better done through blogging than through responding to requests on SSC forums.

tabinsc (10/22/2013)Thank you Steve for this article. This is something I need to do but haven't done yet. I guess writing the first one is the most difficult.

Nah, first one is easy. Second, third, fourth, etc. to infinity, that's when they get difficult. Maintaining a blog over time really is a lot of work. And you want to post in a semi-regular fashion. I'd say, minimum, once every month to 6 weeks. Any less than that and it looks kind of unprofessional.